Family Roots Run Deep...Just Don't Know The Connection

At a local eatery (and there are not many of them where we live...), there's a plank of wood with branding on it. Under each branded symbol is a name showing, what I believe, is an evolution of a family crest, the May family. The board is not placed in a central location, more off to the side.

After decades, The Pie Dump Restaurant recently changed owners. Previously, there were dozens of things to see on the walls, everything from sports memorabilia to stuffed animal heads. The new ownership left a few things, but definitely cleaned things up...

But, they left the board.

When I attended elementary school, a family moved in from up north, from the area where we now live. Over the years, I became friends with the family, quite good friends, actually. The family name...May.

Families up here--as with many areas--tend to stick around. A word of advice was given to us after we arrived a few years back. "Be careful when you talk about people, because you never know who they're related to." Not talking about people is good advice in general, but here there are apparently several influential families here you don't want to cross. I'll bet there are several members of my friend's family still living in the area.

That's why I took notice of the branded board. Are the previous owners part of the May family? Or, is the information just interesting...interesting enough to warrant real estate inside the restaurant? I could have asked the new owner, but he was busy.

We're all related, if we go back far enough. In the Intermountain West, many of us share common ancestors. It makes for a close (at times...) community. I'm sure there's a connection between The Pie Dump, and the May family. I just don't know what it is.

Box Elder Bugs...A Religious Plague?

 So a few weeks ago, we're sitting in church, as one is wont to do, and you notice something on the printed program, or you notice something climbing up the wall, or on the window, or in your hair...

Box Elder bugs.

If you notice one, you start to see another, then another, then you see they're all over the place.

I don't know if other areas are affected by these little black and red bugs. I know they're along the Wasatch Front because they flocked to our old house in Davis County. I guessed correctly that they would be at our new house, especially since we moved to Box Elder County and the bugs are called Box Elder bugs. 

I was right.

As far as bugs go, I don't mind these little guys, that is, of course, if there's only a few. I have seen groups of the buggers clumped together where they're literally inches thick. I do not them like that. In church, there were several. There was even a boy of unknown age, who--in the middle of the service--took a pen and tried to stab the bugs as they scurried along the walls and windowsills, the rhythmic sound of "donk, donk, donk" echoed in the space as the tip of the pen hit wood, then wall, then bug, then wall and so on.

Many people I do know not like winter. For them, they'd live in an endless summer with warm temperatures and excuses to wear less clothing. Though I do enjoy summer, I also enjoy the time when freezing temperatures kill bugs like mosquitoes...especially mosquitoes.

The past couple of days have been especially cold, so much so, the ground has frozen. I'm thinking no insect, no matter how hardy, could survive. Church is in two days. I think I'll check to see if there's any of my little friends still around. I'm going to go out on a limb and say, I think there will be.

Unsung Heroes...

 I've blogged about them before...drivers and other public servants who go to work when many of us want to not go anywhere. They climb in their trucks and push snow from the streets so that the society can continue moving.

Unsung heroes.

As far as the latest storms are concerns, we did not get hit as bad as many of our in-state neighbors. No, we did not have to shovel our driveways every day for the past week. We only had measurable snow twice, with one storm dumping more snow than the other. Still, without those snowplows running, it would have made life much more miserable...

And unsafe.

It's funny--there are so many people out there that we never think about until we need them, yet, they're behind their desks and their steering wheels day after day, year after year doing their jobs. We don't see them or think about them because we think we don't need them. Then, we get some debilitating snow and then we think about them...think about them a lot.

Up here, many people have trucks, big trucks with big tires that could probably drive over several feet of fallen snow. Many people who live here are extremely "prepared" for events like snow. But, a good government is to help everyone, to help those of us who have all-wheel drive vehicles in the shop or waiting to have their transmissions fixed. No, us non-all-wheel-drive minivan drivers need those plows clearing the way.

Thank you snowplow drivers and dispatchers! I'll sing a blogging song so you won't be so unsung. ;)

What I Didn't Realize...Is This Thing Will Get Humans Back To The Moon

 I went because I wanted to see something cool. I didn't realize until I got there and began talking to other spectators, is that I was looking at history, aviation history, space travel history.

This thing will get humans back to the moon.

I had no idea.

I know they've tested rocket boosters in the hills in Box Elder County, Utah for decades. I've always wanted to see a demonstration. I got to know one of the engineers who works on those rockets and I asked him if the test firings were open to the public. He said they were--the first opportunity to go, I went.

Among the thousands of fellow curious onlookers were several who I would describe as geeks, super-intelligent scientists who were more excited to see the event than I was. I set up my camera next to a several other tripods and struck up a conversation with one of those scientists. I didn't get his name, but I found out he works for Northrup Grumman, the builders of the rockets.

In the hour-plus we waited for the firing, he and I talked. He knew all about the rocket and not only that, he knew what the rocket would be used for. Had I cared to do even a little research I could have found out, too, but it was wonderful to hear someone with the passion of a scientist tell me the importance of the booster. 

Within a few years, these boosters will help send humans back to the moon, but not just to land, walk/drive around for a while (hit a golf ball, maybe...), then leave. No, they'll be building a station on the moon. The scientist not only knew those details, he knew all the launch dates of the missions scheduled for the next couple of years. Fascinating.

Like I said, I could have done a little research and found out the same thing. I'm glad I didn't. I'm glad I waited and heard it from someone who works in the field, who couldn't wait to be in Florida when the rocket actually launches and not just scorches the side of a Northern Utah mountain. His passion was infectious. It got me excited, too.

Yes, I went for one reason with a certain amount of knowledge. I came home with more than I had expected. Amazing times ahead.

Amazing...Simply Amazing

 "Take the umbrella," my wife told me before I left.

It turned out to be a lifesaver.

I knew they tested rockets at the site for years. I'd catch a short video on the local news of the latest test firing and I always wanted to see on in person. Just after we moved, we were sitting around our new house and we felt a low rumble, not anything big, like a heavy truck driving by. Then we saw the plume of smoke over a distant mountain and we knew...

They'd tested another rocket.

For their latest test, the company sent out a flyer in the mail--the next test will take place such and such. I decided now was my chance. Since I was a small child, I remember the watching the moon landings on TV, looking up at the moon and thinking there were people walking up there. It's always fascinated me.

I called a friend, an engineer who works at the site. He gave me some suggestions on when to arrive, what to bring. Sunscreen, water, a chair. The wife suggested the outdoor umbrella. I got there early and set up camp.

One thing I expected to find (and one thing I did find...) was a group of people who liked to chat. I spent a lot of time talking to a kid (he was a rocket scientist, but he looked like a kid...) who knew all about the program and the significance of the test. He knew future rocket dates and when they expect to start re-sending humans to the moon. Amazing. I also met another engineer from Texas. It was fun to chat with him--I love hearing about our state form those who did not grow up here.

After a few delays--nothing too long--the countdown resumed. I had no idea what to expect. My friend told me "You see if before you hear it." The clock ticked down. You could feel the excitement rise with each passing second. Finally, T-minus 10 seconds. Everyone counted down, then...

This little tube looking like a white pencil a 1.6 miles away came to life. The roar of the engine hit seven seconds later. You could hear the crackling, all that power...incredible.

We watched until the fire died, the huge plume of smoke rose above us. We all cheered.

Everyone hurried to their cars to crank the a/c and escape the 100˚ heat. As I sat in my car, I watched a slow-moving fire spread over the mountain caused by the test. I don't know, but I think the grooves carved into the mountainside are fire breaks, to stop any fire that eventually happens at these things. Finally, my car made it out of the parking lot and I came home.

I may ever get to see a rocket launch from the coastline. This may be the closest I ever get. And if that's the case, I'm okay with it. Watching the test firing was, in a word...amazing.

My New Favorite Instagram Account...

I am not a big Instagramer. I mean, I use the app occasionally. When I want to post a picture that is more artistic, I'll use Instagram.

I don't follow that many sites, either. I have several friends that I follow on the site, but I admit I don't fully utilize it as many do.

 I do have a few favorites. A guy in Denmark who takes pictures from the handlebars. Love his stuff. Another friend, Paul Jespersen, always posts incredible pictures of Utah and the world. I don't know what he does for a living, but he gets to travel and he's got a great eye.

I found a site recently that I'm really enjoying, and the photos are of places I don't need to travel across the world to see...just across the county. The site is the instagram account for Box Elder County. It's under "boxelder" if you're searching.

Before we moved here, I knew of Box Elder County, but I didn't now all that much. In the time we've been here, my wife and I have traveled across much of it. We have not gone west beyond the mountain range to the Park Valley or Grouse Creek. To Be honest, I'm not sure if we'll go...it's way way out there.

Finding new places to visit is fun. Seeing the local beauty is fun. Box Elder County is a big place and there's a lot to see. I'm glad there's a site that shows off much of its beauty and uniqueness.

The Land Of Many Fires...

 We spotted the field fires last fall, not so many, but enough to notice that we are living in a different place now, a place of fires.

They've started back up this spring.

This place brings up so many memories.

I grew up in Farmington, named--I imagine--because there were numerous farms in the area. Even when we moved there in 1970 there were still numerous farms remaining. Now...not so much. In fact, almost all land in the city limits have been converted into living space, not for horses, cows, pigs, and chickens, or for orchards and vegetable gardens, but for people. There's a good reason for this--it's a fantastic place to live and raise children.

We lived up on the hill, not the highest house on the hill, but high enough to see much of the town. I remember seeing field fires all the time. I'm no farmer or chemist or specialist in why it's good to burn fields, but from what I understand burning fields replaces nutrients into the soil. I know forest fires are nature's way of cleansing the ecosystem. I assume the same can be said for the advantages of smaller versions.

We're again on a hill...not as high up as before, but we can see much more of the valley, and other valleys. I snapped a picture of a fire the other day. We expect to see more as we live in the land of many fires.

It's Where They Make The Rockets...

When you've lived in the same town for decades, you pretty much know the area. You know where the roads take you. You know where you can get a Mexican Coke at 2am (well, we used to know that before everything changed in 2020...). You knew the people, knew which roads were cleared first when it snowed, and which neighborhoods had good yard sales.

But, when you move, you're starting from Square One. Something my wife and I have been doing on the weekends is going on Sunday drives. Last Sunday, we got in the van and took a trip south, then turned west, then north a little, then west again. We drove out to Promontory Point--the spot where America's first continental railroad was completed. We decided not to spend the $20 for a tour (we'll do it another time...) and we headed back. 

We drove east until we reached the main road, a road that goes right by the Northrop Grumman rocket-building facility, formally Morton Thiokol. I'm sure they do other things, but the site is most famous--for good or bad--as the place where the booster rockets for the Space Shuttle were built.

And they had one on display.

I grew up in the space age. I remember watching the Apollo moon launches on TV. I don't remember much--I was 3 1/2 when Apollo 11 landed on the moon, but I remember the ones that followed, watching the astronauts be picked up from the ocean, seeing the big orange and white parachutes.

I was out of the country for the first shuttle disaster. The world turned to that same plant as questions were answered and blame dispensed. Still, seeing that huge rocket beside the road was amazing. It's another cool thing about living here. Not everyone can say they live so close to a place where they make NASA rockets.

But we can.